We put together a list of the best checking and savings bonus offers. This includes mostly national banks with soft credit pulls when you open an account with a few exceptions. We do live a few with hard pulls and a few from credit unions and regional banks. If you find out of a bank that offers a better bonus then please let us know. See our list of business bonus for new accounts here.
SOFI Offers a fee-free driven app checking and savings we found better and easier than most of the older banks.
Go here to read more about the $50 bonus from SOFI
Chase $300 Bonus – Available In Branch & Online
This checking bonus from Chase can be paired with a $150, $200 or $300 savings bonus as well. You can do one per calendar year max.
Direct deposit required, no minimum
Soft pull on credit
Can’t fund with a credit card
HSBC – Up To $750 Bonus – No Direct Deposit Required
HSBC has been a part of the online banking game for awhile now but their website can be a bit of a hassle. Read more about how we think the $350 bonus is one of the best.
Soft pull on credit
Direct deposit not required
Can’t fund with a credit card
Wells Fargo $200 Checking Bonus
You may live in an area with no direct deposit requirement. Read more here.
Soft pull
Can fund up to $50 online with a credit card
Direct deposit required (in most areas)
Citibank $300 Bonus
Citibank in the past has had bonuses as high as $400 with less strict requirements. You can get the bonus again if you haven’t held a Citi banking account within the past 180 days. You just need to be able to deposit $15,000.
Direct deposit not required
Can’t fund with a credit card
Soft pull
Bank of America $100 Bonus/$300 Bonus
They have bigger targeted bonuses of up to $300 before, so check to see if you are targeted for this first. All you have to do is sign into your BOA credit card account and look at offers.
Soft pull
Can’t fund with a credit card, can fund with a debit card up to $250
Requires direct deposits
E*Trade $150 Bonus
E-Trade has been one of our favorite banks for years although it was recently bought by a huge brokerage we hope they keep the no-fee checking at ATMs. They are offering bonuses right now from $50 and up with as little as a $500 deposit. Go here to learn more about the E-Trade bonuses.
Charles Schwab $100 Bonus
This is similar to the Etrade bank where you get ATM fees reimbursed, no fees for foreign transaction withdrawals) and you can also get this account and a brokerage account at the same time for one hard pull. The brokerage account then gives you access to the Charles Schwab credit cards. See more here at schwab.com/referred.
Hard pull to open
No requirements for bonus
Christian Community Credit Union – $200 Bonus – Must Be A Member of A Christian Ministry
The Christian Ministry requirement seems to be enforced and will rule out a lot of people, if you are eligible though this is a great deal. Read more here about Christian Loans.
Soft pull
Direct deposit with no minimum specified
Can fund up to $100 for checking account and $500 for CD with a credit card.
Best Saving Account Bonuses
Discover Savings $150/$200 Bonus
Requires a deposit of $15,000 for $150 bonus or $200 for $20,000 bonus, but no minimum deposit length. Great deal, but only once per lifetime.
$15,000 deposit required or $20,000 for $200 bonus, no minimum length
No credit card funding
Soft pull
Chase $200 Savings Bonus – In Branch & Online
They also have bonuses for $300 (requires $25,000 deposit) and $150 (requires $10,000 deposit). Can be combined with the $300 checking bonus listed above as well.
$15,000 deposit required must be maintained for 90 days
Soft pull
Can’t fund with a credit card
Chase $300 Savings Bonus – In Branch
As mentioned above they have a $200 bonus and $150 bonus as well.
$25,000 deposit required must be maintained for 90 days
Soft pull
Can’t fund with a credit card
Fidelity Bank $100 Savings
Can be combined with the $100 checking bonus they also offer.
Capital One’s 360 Checking account is offering a $300 bonus that is unusually easy to understand and relatively simple to earn. For many people, that makes it one of the most appealing checking account bonuses available right now.
360 checking bonus
The offer is attractive because it combines a solid cash bonus with a low barrier to entry. You do not need a large deposit to open the account, and the qualifying direct deposit requirement is more approachable than many competing bank promotions.
Bank Bonus Competitor Comparison
Capital One’s $300 for just $1,000 total deposits beats many rivals requiring higher volumes or fees.
The current Capital One 360 Checking promotion gives new customers a $300 bonus after completing the required direct deposit activity within the offer window. In most versions of this deal, the main requirement is making two qualifying direct deposits of at least $500 each.
That means the total direct deposit requirement is manageable for many people who receive regular paychecks. It is also much easier than some bank bonuses that require a single large direct deposit or a much higher cumulative deposit amount.
Why people like this bonus
virtual card
This offer stands out for a few simple reasons. First, it is a cash bonus from a major national bank, so it has the credibility and convenience many people want.
Second, Capital One’s 360 Checking account does not usually come with the kind of ongoing fees that make some bonuses less appealing. That matters because a checking bonus is only truly valuable if you can complete it without creating extra costs later.
Third, the account is easy to use as a long-term backup checking account. If you want to keep it open after the bonus posts, the account structure makes that practical.
How to get the bonus
Here is the simplest way to approach it.
Go here to Open a new Capital One 360 Checking account if you are eligible for the offer.
Make sure you are using the current bonus promotion when you apply.
Fund the account if needed, though the bonus usually depends on direct deposits rather than a large opening deposit.
Set up two direct deposits of at least $500 each within the required timeframe.
Wait for the bonus to post after the bank processes your qualifying deposits.
The most important part is completing the direct deposits on time. Once those hit the account in the right amount, the rest is mostly a waiting game.
What counts as direct deposit
The safest type of qualifying deposit is a payroll deposit from your employer. That is the cleanest and most reliable way to satisfy bank bonus requirements.
Government benefits, pensions, and other recurring payroll-style deposits often work as well. These are typically the kinds of deposits banks are designed to count for bonus offers.
Some people try other ACH credits or payment sources, but those can be less predictable. If you want the lowest-risk path, use a real paycheck direct deposit if at all possible.
How it compares with other bank bonuses
Compared with many other checking account bonuses, Capital One’s offer is easier to complete. Some banks offer larger bonuses, but they often require much bigger deposits, more complicated rules, or a branch visit.
For example, higher-value offers from large banks may require several thousand dollars in direct deposits or maintaining a balance for a set period of time. Those offers can be good, but they are not always as convenient.
Capital One’s $300 bonus is especially appealing because it strikes a good balance between value and effort. You are not chasing a huge payout with a huge hassle attached. Instead, you are getting a meaningful bonus with a straightforward requirement.
Like keeping bonus-earning accounts easy to maintain.
It is also a good option for people who collect bank bonuses regularly and want a deal that does not require a major commitment. The lower deposit threshold makes it easier to fit into a normal banking setup.
Bottom line
The Capital One 360 Checking $300 bonus is one of the better bank offers available because it is simple, familiar, and achievable. The requirements are manageable, the account is easy to use, and the bonus amount is strong enough to make the effort worthwhile.
For anyone looking for a straightforward checking account promotion, this is a deal worth considering.
The following is a list of some of the hottest bank bonuses from US Banks including regional, local banks, and credit unions.
Bank of America is currently offering a $300 checking account bonus for targeted customers.
Capital One is offering their 360 Checking account with a $400 bonus when you open an account and receive 2 direct deposits of $250 or more within 60 days of account opening, available for targeted customers.
We get tons of messages asking us where to find the highest interest paying checking or savings account. Here’s a highly recommended option that is the best interest rate you can make without going to a credit union or jumping hoops.
SoFi Money is a cash management account with absolutely no fees. Similar to a regular bank account without all the hassles and fees. They also offer a higher interest rate than most banks. Best of all, all ATM fees are reimbursed when using their debit card, so it is a great account to use when traveling internationally. Also, there is no hard pull that will hurt your credit reports.
Best of all, the sign up offer for the SoFi Money account was just increased to nice $50 – $300 bonus for new sign-ups! SoFi has been around since 2011 and have almost a million people using their app so they are growing significantly to be a competitor to the major banks with it’s high interest payout and easy to use interface and did we mention sign-up bonus!
New App Members Sign Up Offer
There are two new member offers for those signing up for both a SoFi Money and SoFi Invest account this month. As mentioned above, the SoFi Money bonus just increased, although it is still not as high as the bonus you’ll receive with the Sofi Invest bonus. You can get both bonuses because you are eligible to stack the bonus for each account.
SoFi Invest $50 Bonus: Deposit $5,000 in your account and you’ll receive a $50 bonus for free stock.
Additionally, if you refer friends or family members and they open up either account, you can continue to earn free money. You’ll receive $25 for everyone that opens up a SoFi Money account and $100 for a SoFi Invest account.
To add more to the list of things we like with this app they are currently offering a 20% cash back on Netflix paid with their debit card this is similar to the promotion that they ran with Lyft where we profited over $100 in ride reimbursements last month.
SoFi Checking and Savings Account Bonus: Up to $250 Bonus PLUS 4.60% APY
SoFi Checking and Savings is much like other deposit accounts, except with one big benefit—you can earn up to 4.60% APY on your savings balance, as well as 0.50% APY on your checking balance. New customers can also currently earn a sign-up bonus worth up to $300 just for opening a new Sofi Checking and Savings account and receiving qualifying direct deposits.
You also won’t have to jump through a lot of hoops to earn that elevated annual percentage yield (APY). All you have to do is set up monthly direct deposits of your paycheck or government-issued benefits. You won’t even have to receive a minimum direct deposit amount to earn the increased APY. If you don’t receive monthly direct deposits, you can still earn the top savings rate by depositing $5,000 or more each month.
SoFi Checking and Savings: $250 Bonus It’s pretty common for banks to offer a welcome bonus when you sign up and meet certain requirements, and the SoFi Checking and Savings account is no different.
New customers can currently earn a one-time bonus of up to $300 when they open a new SoFi Checking and Savings account before December 31, 2024.
Open a new SoFi Checking and Savings Account. Receive at least $1,000 in qualifying direct deposits within a 25-day “Evaluation Period,” which begins the day your first qualifying direct deposit is received. Hit the minimum requirement to earn a $50 cash bonus. Reach the next tier to earn you a $300 bonus. Once you meet the direct deposit requirement, you’ll receive your bonus within seven business days after the Evaluation Period.
SoFi Money: Earn 10% Back On Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Instacart, Netflix & Spotify
SoFi Money is offering 10% back up to $50 for streaming and grocery store merchants.
Grocery stores:
Instacart
Whole Foods
Trade Joe’s
Streaming services:
Netflix
Disney+
Spotify
Our Thoughts on Sofi
When I tried opening both a SoFi Money andSoFi Invest account it took me just a few minutes to fully get both accounts set up. The process was seamless and transferring money into my account was easy. It’s not nearly as much a hassle as the big bank accounts.
I received my SoFi Money cash bonus within just 3 business days of setting up my account, and I received my free stock from the SoFi Money account within the same time period. I also referred many friends and family members and most of those referrals show up the following day.
It took about a week to receive my debit card. I tried it out on an ATM that charges a fee and I was immediately reimbursed. So far, I truly have enjoyed my new Sofi debit card!
This is a great way to get some money back into your pocket simply by signing up for a debit card account. Unlike credit card welcome offers, there is no minimum amount of spend needed, no hard inquiry, and no guessing whether or not you are going to get approved. Many may just enjoy the benefit of the reimbursed ATM fees.
Referring Friends (or spouse)
To refer a friend, you’ll need to install the SoFi app. (I was able to find it quickly in the App Store). Once in the app, on the upper left-hand side of the welcome screen you’ll see a circle with a person icon enclosed. Click that button.
Then, click the link that says “Invite friends.” From there, you can refer a friend to SoFi Money and SoFi Invest. You can save your referral link and send it to friends, or you can directly send the link via a text message, email, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Feel free to comment below with your experience and referral links from using SoFi.
Swagbucks and MyPoints are ways to earn rewards (cash and gift cards) for online activities. They are owned by the same parent company, so their offers are often similar or identical. We prefer Swagbucks for most of our bigger bonuses for banking and they have offered bonuses for things such as driving for DoorDash or Uber and grocery shopping.
Swagbucks has 18 money-making offers available that will give you over $850 in rewards. Some of these offers require you to open a bank account, an investment account, or a credit card and make a minimum deposit or receive a direct deposit which is an easy way to make money online. For example, you can get $200 from Swagbucks if you open a Chime Bank account and receive at least 2 qualifying direct deposits in your account. You can also get $40 from Swagbucks if you open a Greenlight debit card for kids and make a $20 minimum deposit. You could even get $150 from Sofi Bank just for throwing $100 into your account after signing up as a new customer.
As I began my research, I noticed the offers for banks divided themselves into two categories – offers requiring direct deposit and offers not requiring direct deposit.
I do have direct deposits to my current bank account. But they are not usually large enough to meet the requirements detailed in the fine print of the offers. You can use services such as Brex Banking to do easy direct deposits if you do not have an employer who will do this.
If you do all the offers, you will get over $350 just for the non-direct deposit bonuses! To find these offers on the Swagbucks website, login to your account and click on Discover.
These offers are subject to change so always read the fine print on these offers.
Sofi $150 Bonus
A bank offering a hybrid of investing, credit, and cash banking, SoFi is proving a bit hard to navigate for me. This is the one I am trying out first. I signed up for my account a few weeks ago and I still cannot figure out how to fund it. It may be my bank (a smaller, local bank). Hopefully it will work for you. Since they offer hybrid banking, there are a number of offers for SoFi within Swagbucks and MyPoints. Make sure you are opening and completing the requirements for the bonus for the type of account which works for you. Read our full Sofi review here.
Swagbucks offer: Open an online account, deposit $100, get $150.
This is our favorite banking offer especially with the high interest they are paying out. Earn up to 4.20% APY on savings balances with direct deposits, and 1.20% APY on checking balances. Members without direct deposit will earn 1.20% APY on both savings and checking balances. FDIC insured up to $2M through a network of participating banks. Open a new account and deposit at least $100 to earn 15,000 Swagbucks. PLUS if you direct deposit $4,999.99 or more in 1 month, you are eligible to earn an additional $250 bonus into your SoFi account.
Axos Bank $150 Bonus
Axos Bank gives you all of the features of online banking with none of the fees. Open a bank account and deposit $750 or more to earn 15,000 SB (worth $150).
A mobile banking platform with no monthly fees and debit card, Varo provides the same protection as a normal bank account. It offers a little something when you sign up. Varo also has the options to save automatically by rounding up the totals on your purchases and saving the change or automatically setting aside a percentage of your direct deposits.
An app intended to help young people get out of debt, Charlie helps debtors plan to be debt-free. The app also lays aside money (for debt or for savings) based on the rules set by the user. An example given may be: “Set aside $5 each time I spend at Target.”
The BBVA Online Checking account promotes it is fee-free. Their website shows the various fees of other online banks for checking. This fact makes it easy to sign up for an account for a short-term in order to get a little bonus. An initial deposit of $25 is required to open a free account.
Note: the fine print of this offer warns of an automatic paper statement fee of $3 per month. You can opt out of it, but you must opt out in order to avoid the fee.
Swagbucks offer: Open an online account, deposit $25, get $50.
Oxygen $30 Bonus
Another online personal or business account without fees, Oxygen is a debit-card based banking system. Both the business account and the personal account have a cash back program attached. They also have a referral program which can net you $50 for each friend who meets the requirements of a new account up to $500 every 6 months. The friend also gets a $50 reward.
Swagbucks offer: Open an online account, deposit $20, get $30.
Copper $25 Bonus
Actually a bank targeting teens, MyPoints still offers real money to give Copper a try. Braces and awkward disposition are not a requirement. As I was researching their website, I discovered they offer teens rewards for learning about finances. Financial literacy and bonus money – win, win!
MyPoints offer: Open an online account, deposit $10, make one purchase get $25.
Lili $40 Bonus
An account marketed to freelancers, Lili is a debit-card based banking option. Fee-free banking and automatic savings options are great features of this bank. They also have a referral program which can net you $50 for each friend who meets the requirements of a new account. There is a $500 lifetime cap on rewards.
Swagbucks offer: Open an online account, deposit $200, get $40.
Direct-Deposit Bank Offers
Some may not have direct deposit high enough to qualify for most of these bank offers below. But if you do have a direct deposit set up for your account, these offers may be a wonderful way to make extra cash for switching your bank account. We recommend opening a Brex account or checking to see what will count as a direct deposit.
Note: It requires work to switch not only the bank account over, but also the direct deposit. Take that into consideration when deciding if these offers are right for you.
$100 or $50 Swagbucks with Current Fee-Free Banking
A modern banking option, Current is offering many of the fee-free banking benefits of the other banks detailed in this list. I like the ability to automatically save and create “pods” for specific savings goals. They also offer some banking options for families with teens.
Swagbucks offer: Open an account, have a direct deposit of over $250 in the first 30 days, get $100.
Chime
Another fee-free debit based account, Chime also offers a Savings Account when you sign up for their Visa debit account. They also offer automatic savings options to help you save money effortlessly.
Swagbucks offer: Open an account, have a direct deposit of over $200 in the first 45 days, get $125.
MyPoints offer: Open an account, have a direct deposit of over $200 in the first 45 days, get $135.
Rakuten offer: Open an account, have a direct deposit of over $200 in the first 30 days, get $40.
Is Swagbucks legit? Will I get paid?
Swagbucks is a legitimate company. Let’s say Bank A will pay Swagbucks $60 for a new customer, and then Swagbucks promises you $50 of that. That means both Swagbucks has to track that you opened the account, and Bank A has to track that someone from Swagbucks opened the account, and they both have to agree that Swagbucks user was you specifically. We recommend using the same email that you used to open the bank account that you use with your Swagbucks account.
We love to stack and use Swagbucks when they offer a bonus that is stacked on top of another bonus, and not instead of another bonus. For example, with Plynk they may only offer 3500 SB right now (worth ~$35), but at least it is on top of the standard $50 bonus. That way, it’s just gravy on top, instead of a possible net loss by making you miss out on an alternative bonus if the tracking goes awry. I usually avoid Swagbucks if they tell me I’ll be disqualified from the standard bonus.
How much are Swagbucks worth?
Thankfully, their redemption options are relatively easy to understand. 2500 SB is worth approximately $25 via various options. 2500 SB = $25 cash deposited directly into your bank account or brokerage account, no fees, uses Plaid service. You can also redeem it for Paypal cash, Uber, Airbnb, and Amazon gift cards at sometimes a discount of 10% making it worth more than your typical cash back bonus redemption.
